The most memorable Wedding in Los Angeles
by katie1999
Summary: When Victoria announces her engagement to one of her suitors, Zorro tries everything to hold her, breaking all the rules. Will it be enough to change her mind when Zorro can never marry her because it would mean his death? A follow up story as a Groundhog variation after ch5 of this story is UNDONE
1. Chapter 1

**The most memorable Wedding in Los Angeles**

Disclaimer: This story was written solely for the enjoyment of other Zorro fans and is not intended to infringe on any copyrights held by Goodman/Rosen Productions, New World Television, Zorro Productions, the estate of Johnston McCulley or anyone else.

**Chapter 1**

"Did you hear the news about Victoria?" Alejandro asked Diego over lunch.

"What news?" Diego asked, alarmed. After he had ridden all night as Zorro, he had risen late and was still tired from his lack of sleep.

"I'd never thought that of her, but obviously it's true."

"What news? What about Victoria?" Diego asked again, irritated.

"Victoria announced her engagement today."

"Her engagement to Zorro?" Diego guessed though they had agreed to keep it a secret.

"No, not to Zorro," his father corrected him. "She's going to marry Don Pablo Punson."

"Victoria and Don Pablo? That can't be!" Diego said. "He proposed to her before, playing the guitar in the tavern, and she rejected his proposal straight away and even threatened to burn his guitar if he didn't stop singing."

"She spent the night with Don Pablo Punson at his hacienda. They both returned about mid-morning to the pueblo. Of course, Don Pablo did the right thing and announced their engagement. The wedding will take place in three weeks."

"There must be a mistake. She is in love with Zorro!" Diego said, trying to hide his shock.

"Didn't we all think so?" his father said. "It seems she was tired of waiting, and now she has chosen someone else. I'd never thought she'd spend the night with him before the wedding. That's really scandalous. It's good that they don't want to wait. Who knows how long this has been going on."

"Maybe we should talk to Victoria first and give her the chance to explain herself?" Diego suggested.

"She spent the night with him. What else is there to say? No matter what, her reputation is ruined. I will ride to the pueblo later and congratulate her to her engagement. Do you want to join me?"

"I don't know yet. I have to check my experiences first." Diego excused himself quickly after dessert to slip into the cave where he could let his emotions run free. He sat down at his desk and hid his face in his hands. He had lost Victoria. How could this happen? Hadn't they kissed only a week ago? Victoria had assured him of her love and promised to wait for him. And now she was going to marry another?

Z Z Z

After siesta, Diego joined his father on his ride to the pueblo, pretending he wanted to congratulate her on her engagement too.

The tavern was more crowded than usual for a normal weekday and Diego noticed how the men threw glances at Victoria while she was busy serving her customers.

"Hola Victoria," his father said friendly, as she came to serve them. "I heard congratulations are in order though your engagement to Don Pablo is quite a surprise."

"Thank you, Don Alejandro," Victoria said with a forced smile.

"Is everything all right?" Diego asked. "You don't look very happy. May I ask why you suddenly agreed to marry Don Pablo? I thought you were in love with Zorro?"

"I'm fine, Diego, and my engagement is none of your business," Victoria rebuked him. "What can I get you to drink?"

"I don't know what to think about this, Father," Diego said, after Victoria had left their table. "I can't believe she suddenly fell in love with Don Pablo."

"It may not be a love match, but Don Pablo is rich and can offer her a home and a family; something that Zorro never can. In any case she'll be better off than with an outlaw. Who wants to blame her if she's tired of waiting though the circumstances aren't the best either, considering her ruined reputation."

"Father, you can't really believe that of Victoria."

"It doesn't matter why she agreed to marry Don Pablo, but I don't think there will be any future for her and Zorro. Why would Zorro take her back now?" Alejandro shrugged.

"Father, please, don't talk about her like that," Diego said, looking concerned in Victoria's direction. Was his father right? Had she really spent the night with Don Pablo? Was everything lost now? With a frown he noticed Don Pablo sitting at a table in the back of the tavern with his friends, ordering more wine on the house to celebrate the engagement and from their inebriated state it wasn't their first bottle.

Diego followed Victoria into the kitchen, as she took the empty bottle to replace it. She turned around with a fright as she hadn't heard him coming.

"Don Pablo is having a good time with his friends celebrating and from their noise I'm guessing they have been at it for some time. How long have they been celebrating on your cost? Since the morning?" he guessed, and when Victoria only bit her lip, he knew he was right. "Why haven't you joined the happy celebration? Do you want to tell me what happened?"

For a moment she looked as if she wanted to cry, but then she pressed her lips together to suppress her tears and shook her head. "I'm fine, Diego. Why can't you leave me alone?"

He sighed. "If you need a friend to talk to, I'm here." As he left the kitchen, he passed by Don Pablo and his friend who had started to grow impatient and ask why it took her so long to bring the wine.

"I'm not sure everything went right with Victoria's engagement," Diego stated on the ride home with his father. "Don Pablo was way too happy, and Victoria appeared more sad than happy."

"You may be right, Diego," his father said, "but with her ruined reputation, it's her only option to marry Don Pablo. She may not have planned it, but after some time she will realize that it's better to marry and have a family now. With our current alcalde Zorro will never be free to marry her, if he doesn't die in his fight."

His father had expressed his greatest fear, and it left him depressed. Was there no more future for him and Victoria?


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

In the evening Zorro waited in Victoria's room, and she wasn't surprised to see him as if she had expected him.

"Zorro, it's good to see you," she said hesitantly.

"Is it?" Zorro asked. "I heard the news today. Is it true that you want to marry Don Pablo? I thought we had an understanding?" he asked, hurt.

"We did, but I realized that you can never marry me as long as there's a price on your head." She turned her head, avoiding meeting his look.

"And that's why you want to marry Don Pablo?" Zorro grabbed her by the shoulders and made her face him. "Do you love him? Is it true that you spent the night with him?"

"No, it isn't as you think. You are the only one I love and Don Pablo didn't touch me," Victoria assured him, putting her hands on his chest.

He grabbed her by her forearms and pushed her away. "How can I believe you if you want to marry him?"

Then she started to cry. "I love you, but I have no choice. There's no way we can be together. If you marry me, the alcalde will use me to capture and hang you, or I will lose you by marrying Don Pablo." As she covered her face with her hands, he couldn't stand it. He drew her into his arms, feeling her body shake from her sobbing.

"Querida, please don't cry," he whispered. "I love you." He pulled her hands from her face and started to kiss her tears away.

"I love you too, and I can't stand to lose you." She returned his kisses while she kept on crying.

"Mi Querida, I can't see your tears. I'll do anything to make you happy again."

Later when he held her naked body in his arms, he couldn't quite remember how the situation had gotten out of control. They had both been desperate to lose each other and in their despair they had given in to their passion.

"You're mine now. Nothing can take that away from me," he whispered. Tenderly, he caressed her face in the darkness, before he kissed her tenderly. "I owe you to show my face." Victoria had extinguished the light earlier, before he they had removed their clothing including his mask. Now he reached across her for the light on the nightstand, but Victoria intercepted his arm before he could light the candle.

"No! Don't! I must not know."

"Why? Do you think you can't love me as myself?" he asked, hurt.

"It's not that. I want you to be safe. Nobody can force me to reveal your name if I don't know it. I'll never betray you."

"Do you want to wait until we get married?" He smiled as he kissed her cheek.

"Nothing has changed. I will marry Don Pablo. Zorro can't marry me as long as there's a price on his head and there's no end in sight. You know that and that's why you must go."

He felt the tears on his skin as she buried her face in his shoulder.

"But I thought...," he started, confused, while he held her. "I thought you had changed your mind about us when you started to kiss me … I thought you loved me. I know now that there wasn't anything between you and Don Pablo at his hacienda when I made you mine tonight."

"I love you, but there's no future for us," she cried. "Please, leave now before the soldiers find you. And don't forget this." She withdrew from his arms and turned to her nightstand, opening the drawer and retrieving something after some fumbling, she handed it to him. When he closed his fist around it, he realized it was his ring.

"Victoria, why? I love you. Please, don't do this," he begged her.

"You have to leave," she said, hiding her face in the pillow, but he felt the shaking of her body from her sobbing.

"Don't cry. I love you and always will." He tenderly stroked her head and kissed her cheek, before he turned around and dressed. "We'll talk about this again. I can't lose you after this wonderful night."

As Victoria refused to turn around, he silently climbed out of the window and mounted Toronado to ride home.

Z Z Z

In the morning Diego rode to the pueblo again, hoping Victoria might be more willing to talk, but she simply brought him his coffee and cut short any attempts to switch the topic to her engagement, stating she didn't want to talk. Like the day before, Don Pablo and his friends occupied a table, ordering drinks on the house and keeping Victoria busy.

Z Z Z

At night, he slipped into her room again as Zorro. "Victoria?" he whispered into the darkness. He heard some rustling of the sheets, and then she was in his arms again.

"Zorro." She wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her head in his chest.

"I have come to talk. I know what we did last night was wrong. We should have waited."

"Waited for what? There isn't any future for us anymore." She started to cry again, and he bent down to kiss her, feeling her warm body under the thin nightshirt she wore.

"Don't cry, Querida. Please, I love you. Don't leave me. I need you so much." Then he couldn't stop kissing her anymore, lifting her in his arms and carrying her to the bed.

There hadn't been much chance for talking when Victoria made him to leave two hours later, concerned for his safety.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Today was the last chance to talk to Victoria about her wedding, because tomorrow the ceremony was scheduled. He had tried to talk to her before, but she had always refused to tell him the true reason why she wanted to marry Don Pablo. Whenever he had tried, she had started to cry, and it had ended in kissing and making love, and then she had thrown him out of the bed, telling him to leave before the soldiers spotted Toronado. The last three weeks he had visited her every night, and he had eventually given up talking about her wedding plans to save her the tears, and they had enjoyed their time together, limited as it was while he was always on the run from the soldiers and her upcoming wedding.

Zorro had chosen the late afternoon shortly before the end of siesta when Victoria was about to start her preparations for dinner. It was enough time to talk but not enough time to get_ distracted_ by her kisses and tears as the times before.

"Victoria?"

"Zorro!" she looked up from her cutting table, startled to see him enter her kitchen at this hour when he used to come after bed time. A minute later she was in his arms, kissing him, and the feeling of her soft body pressed against his made him want more. He wanted to feel her warm skin under his hands and taste more than her lips as he kissed her passionately. With effort, he released her and distanced himself from her, folding his arms in front of his chest to better withstand the temptation of touching her.

"I didn't come for that."

"No?" the way she looked at him made him almost forget why he came.

Maybe he should have taken more time and come earlier? Or if they cleared the kitchen table? He shook his head to get himself under control gain. "I have come to talk," he declared.

"Talk? What's there to talk?"

"In the recent weeks you have kissed me and loved me, but you haven't told me why you want to marry another man, when I asked you to marry me. I asked you more than once why you want to marry Don Pablo tomorrow, and since you refused to explain to me why I got my own information. Do you know that the only thing that prevents Don Pablo from losing his hacienda is the prospect of marrying you and getting hold of your tavern? Why do you want to marry him when he only wants your money?"

"Did you get that information from Diego? In the past weeks, he's been in the pueblo constantly, pretending to make inquiries for his paper, asking questions about Don Pablo and trying to make me tell him the reason for my engagement."

"It doesn't matter where I get my information. I want to know how Don Pablo convinced you to give up on us? Tell me why!"

"Because I was stupid, and he tricked me, and now there's no way out," she cried.

"What happened?" Zorro asked, alarmed.

"I rejected Don Pablo when the matchmaker proposed him to me, and he was offended and that's why he planned his revenge."

"How?"

"Don Pablo asked me to accompany him to a party, and he told me that I owed him that for humiliating him in the tavern, so I agreed, but it wasn't as he told me." Ashamed, Victoria looked to the ground.

"What did he do?" Zorro gently touched her chin to make her face him.

"Instead of driving to the party, he drove to his hacienda, saying he had forgotten something. When I followed him inside, he presented me with a private dinner he had prepared. When I said I'd rather go to the party than having dinner with him, he told me I couldn't leave, until I had listened to his offer."

"What offer?"

"He proposed to me again and said that he'd be happy to marry me since Zorro never could. I told him that I didn't want to marry him and wanted to wait for Zorro to be free. Then he told me he wouldn't give me a choice. He manacled me and dragged me into his room. When I asked him why he wanted to force a woman into marrying him who obviously didn't want him, he finally revealed his true intentions to me. As you found out too, he no longer has any money because of gambling or whatever. That's why he decided to marry me to get my tavern. He told me that I could never marry Zorro because it would be his death and that I had no other choice but to marry him now."

"Did he try to force himself upon you?" Zorro asked angrily.

"No. I managed to snatch a knife from the dinner table and told him that he would never be safe in his sleep again and eventually find himself with a knife in his chest if he tried that, and he believed me," Victoria said confidently.

"As he should," Zorro said with a smile.

"I asked him to let me go and told him that I'd never marry him, but he refused. Instead, he explained why I couldn't marry Zorro if I didn't want to be responsible for his death. Though I didn't want to believe him, I realized it was the truth. If I married you, the alcalde would use me as bait to catch you and hang you. Then he dragged me to his bedroom and tied me to a chair where I had to stay the whole night. In the morning all the servants saw me leave his room when he finally released me. Then he drove me back to the pueblo in the morning, telling everyone I spent the night with him," she cried, ashamed. "Everyone was staring at me when Don Pablo told them what had happened. Then there wasn't anything else to do but to agree to the wedding."

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Zorro asked, after Victoria had finished.

"Because I was ashamed, and there is nothing you could do. My reputation is ruined, and all I can do to save it is marrying Don Pablo in a marriage of convenience."

"I can challenge him for what he did to you."

Victoria shook her head. "It won't change a thing. Even if you challenged him, what will you do after you defeated him? If you kill him, it will be murder because he doesn't stand a chance against you. It won't restore my reputation that was already damaged by my relation to you."

"I won't let him force you into a marriage you don't want. _I _want to marry you."

"Please, you can't do anything. I know you can't marry me because it would be your death sentence."

"Do you think I'll watch you enter a forced marriage?" he said angrily.

"But you have to. Don't try to stop it. It's too late now. I need a father..," Victoria stopped her words, biting her lips.

"A father? What do you mean by that?" Zorro asked suspiciously. "Are you pregnant?"

"I don't know. Maybe. It's possible. I think so. It's been every night in the last weeks." She tried to avoid his look as she started to cry. "I can't have a child out of wedlock. Please, it's the only chance I have. I don't care if he only wants me for my tavern if I can keep the child. I know that it's wrong what we did, but I only wanted some love in my life."

"Don't throw that away. My life has no meaning without you. You're my love, Victoria. I can't live without you, and I don't want to let you go." Zorro drew her into his arms, trying to soothe her but instead she only cried harder. "I can't marry you as Zorro, but I can marry you as myself."

"No, you can't. There's no way out," she sobbed. "If I suddenly married someone else, the alcalde would instantly think you are Zorro. It would be the same as if you married me as Zorro, and I don't want you to be responsible for your death. The only chance I have is marrying Don Pablo if I don't want to live in shame. You can't know how it has been for me the last weeks with people staring at me and talking behind my back whenever they thought I wouldn't hear."

"I know how you suffered," he said, noticing her surprise as she realized he must have been in the pueblo as his unmasked self, "but I can't let you marry him. What do you think Don Pablo will do if he finds out about the child? He doesn't appear to be the forgiving type."

Victoria suddenly became scared. He held her by the arms and made her look at him. "Marry me, Querida. Marry me today. I don't care what it means for me. Just don't leave me."

She shook her head. "You can't do that."

He wanted to say more, but then he heard the commotion from the soldiers who returned from their patrol. "I have to go before the soldiers spot Toronado."

"Please, don't interfere. Don't get yourself killed, and don't destroy me my chance for a family," Victoria begged him.

Unable to see her crying, Zorro kissed her tenderly, before he swung himself out of the window.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"Diego, what's bothering you?" His father leaned back into his chair in the parlor, no longer looking at the chess board on the small table between them."You haven't made a move for nearly half an hour, and I haven't seen you play so badly since I taught you the game as a child. You're about to lose after the fifth move."

Diego tried to concentrate on the chess board again, but he couldn't take off his mind from his talk with Victoria. How could he let Don Pablo force her into a marriage she didn't want? But he remembered her plea also that he shouldn't destroy her chance for a family. How could he deny her something that he couldn't give her as Zorro? Would he endanger her if he tried to marry her as himself? Would the alcalde arrest him as Zorro as Victoria feared? Would he hang Victoria beside him? But could her let her go? Could he watch her in an unhappy marriage whenever he saw her in the pueblo? What sense made his life if he lost the woman he loved? Would she even accept the man behind the mask? Should he concede to her wish? What was the right thing to do?

"Diego?" his father asked, concerned. "What's wrong? Do you want to talk?"

"I'm sorry, Father. I'm not in the mood for playing chess tonight."

"You haven't been in the mood for playing during the last weeks either," his father stated. "You either went to bed early or wanted to read in your room. Won't you tell me what's going on? What's on your mind that keeps you from concentrating on your game and makes you play like a beginner?"

Diego lifted his head and looked around in the parlor with its exquisite furniture and all the wealth it displayed. "What's all our money when I can't have what I want the most? Will I ever see my own children running around in the hacienda, have the family I always wanted? I made _one_ mistake and now I pay the price. There's nothing left for me."

"Diego? What are you talking about? What mistake? What did you do?" his father asked. " You have me very concerned. Is there something I can do? Please tell me what's going on. What is it that keeps you from getting married? Why are talking about this tonight?"

"I'm sorry, Father, I didn't want to worry you. There's nothing you can do. I messed up my life years ago and nothing can change that. Now I stand here with empty hands and all I can offer a wife is an early widowhood."

"Diego, _what_ _did you_ _do_? Are you ill? Are you dying? What's wrong with you?"

"Everything's all right, Father. Don't worry." Diego regretted his outburst and had himself under control again, patting his father on the shoulder. "I shouldn't burden you with my problems. I can still fix it. There's only one more thing to do, and everything will be fine." He smiled. "Just remember that I always loved you."

"Diego!" his father said even more concerned. "You can't make believe that everything is fine when I have never seen you so desperate before. Why can't you trust me and tell me what's wrong? I'm your father. Why do you tell me you love as if you don't plan on coming back? What is suddenly so dangerous that you have to do when you never do anything?"

Diego rose from his chair. "Just forget what I said. I'm only tired. Please, excuse me now. I'll see you tomorrow at breakfast."

"Diego, please stay and talk. Tell me what's going on," his father pleaded.

Diego shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I can't." He left the parlor only to slip into the library and enter the cave through the hidden entrance. It took him only a few minutes to change into Zorro and ride out of cave on Toronado.

Z Z Z

Like the nights before, he crossed several roofs before reaching the tavern. He let himself down onto the small ledge in front of Victoria's bedroom window. With his knife he lifted the latch between the shutters, so he could open them and slip into the room, except that it didn't work tonight. The latch was blocked, and the shutters wouldn't open. After several tries, he realized that Victoria must have blocked it from the inside. He knocked on the shutters, calling her out. "Victoria, please let me in. We need to talk."

"No, please go." He heard her muffled reply.

"Victoria, please open, we can't end it like this."

"But we have to! There's no future for us." She was crying now.

"There can be. Let's get married tonight."

"No, you'll be killed. Please, go!"

"Victoria!" He knocked at the window, but she didn't open. "Please!"

Zorro was sure that she was standing right at the window, as he could clearly hear her sobbing. While he continued to knock, he waited for her to open, but instead she retreated from the window, and the sound of her crying faded. Waiting for some minutes if she would change her mind, he had to realize that it was in vain.

As the soldiers below could spot him anytime, he had to climb back onto the roof. Before he returned home, he tried the tavern doors and the window to the hallway, but they were locked as well.

In the cave he changed back into his normal outfit out of habit. Before he stacked away his black clothes, he retrieved the ring from a pocket and placed on his desk. Sitting down in the chair at his desk, he took the ring in his hand and stared at it. What could he do now after Victoria had rejected him tonight? He had been willing to risk discovery if it meant to marry the woman he loved but he could understand that her love for him forbid her to accept this. But what was his life without her? Without the woman he loved and the child she carried? Why had he ever started to court her as Zorro? In a few hours she would marry another because he had made a mess out of his life and he would never hold her again and love her. Unable to hold back his tears anymore, he put his head on the table and cried.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Getting up the next day and driving to the church for Victoria's wedding with Don Pablo felt like torture. Diego had hardly slept because he couldn't bear to lose her. She was having his child, but she let herself be forced into a marriage with a man she didn't love. He couldn't let that happen. All night long he had been tossing around in his bed trying to find a solution until he had made his plan. It was a last desperate attempt but his final chance to keep her. Victoria was right that he couldn't marry her as Zorro because this would mean a death sentence for both of them, but he wouldn't watch her marry Don Pablo.

"Diego, are you coming?" his father asked, when it was time to leave for the pueblo. "Aren't you going to have breakfast too? You look as if need a coffee to get you awake. Did you even sleep? Whatever bothers you so much that it deprives you of sleep, you should sort it out. I'm here if you want to talk."

"Thank you, Father. I will do my best to find a solution. I'll have a coffee, but I can't eat anything now," Diego said, hiding his nervousness. "I don't feel very well today. Would you mind if I take the carriage?"

"Are you afraid you might fall from your horse, Diego?" his father said in disgust at the prospect. "You used to be such a good horseman."

Z Z Z

Victoria looked tired when his father led her to the altar and though she tried to appear happy with a forced smile, Diego didn't miss her red eyes from crying as she passed by his pew. After Alejandro had left Victoria at the altar, he sat down next to Diego to listen to the padre's oration about matrimony. As it was expected of a bride, Victoria was very nervous, but she also looked around a few times as if she feared Zorro would appear and interrupt the wedding. The alcalde also counted on Zorro's appearance and had stationed soldiers inside and outside the church, waiting on his call to arrest Zorro if he tried to stop the ceremony.

"I don't think Zorro will come to the wedding today," whispered his father, pointing at the soldiers. "He hasn't been seen in the pueblo since Victoria announced her engagement."

When it was time for the couple to make their vows, the padre asked the gathered congregation if there were any objections. It was the moment Diego had been waiting for. He rose from the pallet and stepped forward.

"Diego, what are you doing?" his father whispered. "Stay put! You're disturbing the wedding!"

Diego ignored him and walked to the altar, going down on his knees before Victoria. "Victoria, I have always loved you, and I can't see you married to a man you don't love. Please marry me."

Victoria looked at him, stunned. "Diego, why are you saying this now? Why didn't you say something years ago? Before there was Zorro?"

"Don Diego, stay out of this," Don Pedro said angrily. "This is my wedding. Go somewhere else to find a bride."

"Will you marry me?" Diego repeated his question.

Victoria shook her head. "I can't marry you. It's too late now. My reputation is ruined, and you can't marry someone like me. If I married you, I'd only make you unhappy, and I care too much for you to do that to you. I accepted Don Pablo's proposal and will marry him."

Don Pablo's initial anger at the sudden interruption was now replaced by a satisfied grin. "Didn't you hear what she said, Don Diego? You're too late. She would have taken you before Zorro showed her what a real man is, but now she's agreed to marry me. You'd better get up, so we can continue with the ceremony."

"Don't think I will give up so easily." Diego said confidently, as he rose from his knees. Gently, he put his hands on Victoria's shoulders, before he bent his head to whisper into her ear. "You carry my child under your heart, and I won't let you go." He released her again, as he stepped back and opened his hand to display the ring he had retrieved from his pocket.

Victoria eyes went from the familiar ring to his face, and suddenly turning white from shock, she stumbled backward, putting her hand on her chest.

"What did you say to her?" Don Pablo demanded to know.

"Do you want me to say it aloud or will you marry me?" Diego challenged her, knowing too well that she could neither let her pregnancy nor his identity become public at this moment.

"No," she shook her head, shocked by the unexpected revelation. "I will marry you, Diego."

"What did you say to her?" Don Pablo attacked Diego, grabbing him by his lapels. "Do you think because your father is rich you can come up here like this, interrupt my wedding and force a woman to marry you when she said _No_ to you? Twice?"

Diego pushed Pablo's hands away and looked at him icily. "I know why you want to marry Victoria, but she will marry me. You heard her. You have lost."

"I won't leave before you tell me what you whispered into her ear," Don Pablo insisted. "How are you blackmailing her?" "Victoria?" he turned to her. "What did Don Diego say? Was it about money? Did he threaten to ruin your business by using his family's influence?"

"I can't tell," Victoria said.

"Victoria," the padre addressed her. "A marriage is a joining of free wills and nobody can force you to do something you don't want. Who do you want to marry?"

"I will marry Diego." Swaying a little, she reached out for support and Diego steadied her, putting his arm around her back for a moment.

"Diego, what are you doing?" his father had left his pew and joined him at the altar. "How can you do this to Victoria? Forcing her to marry you with whatever you said? Is Don Pablo's suspicion true that you're using your money to get her?"

He wanted to say more but Diego silenced him with his raised hand. "Not now, Father. I'm in the middle of my wedding."

"But you can't marry like this, Diego, stealing another man's bride at the altar and forcing her to marry you," his father objected.

"You always wanted me to get married and today I will whether you like the circumstances or not but you can be my witness." Defeated by Diego's determination, his father gave in and nodded in agreement, as Diego turned to the padre again. "Can we go on with the ceremony now?"

When Victoria nodded, the padre asked them if they wanted to marry each other. Diego's answer was straight and firm, while Victoria agreed with a shaky voice, hardly taking her eyes off Diego, earning her a frown from the padre. "Is this really what you want, Victoria?" the padre asked her again. "Do you want to marry Diego de la Vega?"

"I do." Her answer was louder now and less shaky the second time.

"No! She agreed to marry me!" Don Pablo interrupted again, who had refused to leave the altar, and was standing next to the couple, but it was too late because the padre declared them husband and wife.

Diego kissed her tenderly, but as soon as they looked up again, the alcalde rose from his seat and addressed the soldiers. "Arrest him! Arrest Zorro!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Victoria turned white, and she was about to faint when she saw the soldiers walking up the aisle to the altar. "No, please," she whispered, leaning into Diego's arm around her back as they faced the soldiers walking up the aisle.

"I'm sorry to disturb your wedding, Don Diego, Doña Victoria," the alcalde addressed them, standing behind his soldiers, "but it's my duty to arrest Zorro."

"Arrest whom?" Mendoza asked, looking confused at the couple. "Don Diego?"

"Not Don Diego. Him!" the alcalde said, pointing at Don Pablo.

"Don Pablo is Zorro?" Mendoza asked, "but she married Don Diego?"

"Do I have to explain everything to you, Sergeant?" the alcalde said, exasperated. "You were present during the ceremony, weren't you? I told you to arrest the man Señorita Escalante wanted to marry. And who did she want to marry?"

"Don Pablo?" Mendoza scratched his head.

"Yes, she wanted to marry Don Pablo today," the alcalde said.

"And what about Don Diego?" Mendoza asked.

"We all know that Don Diego can't be Zorro with his lack of swordsmanship and if he _were_ Zorro the Señorita would have agreed to his marriage proposal immediately. Instead, Don Diego forced her to marry him with whatever he whispered into her ear."

"Don Diego can't be Zorro because Señorita Victoria didn't want to marry him, but Don Pablo has to be Zorro because she wanted to marry him?" Mendoza asked.

"Yes, Mendoza, you finally got it straight. Now arrest him," the alcalde ordered, before addressing Victoria.

"Doña Victoria, my best wishes to your wedding. Thank you for helping me arrest Zorro today. I think you made a wise choice in marrying Don Diego, even if it wasn't what you wanted. It spares you the fate of being widowed so soon after the wedding when Zorro is going to hang tomorrow."

"My congratulations to you, Don Diego. You played your cards well. When you couldn't win her with your pitiful declaration of love, you used your money or whatever you had in store to make her change her mind," de Soto nodded, as he signaled the soldiers to lead the protesting Don Pablo away.

"I'm not Zorro," Don Pablo yelled. "Señorita Victoria never wanted to marry me. I forced her to. I'm not Zorro!" The soldiers ignored him, keeping him in their midst as they left the church.

Followed by their guests, Diego and Victoria walked over to the tavern for the wedding reception. The friends of Don Pablo, who had become constant patrons of the taverns in the weeks since he announced his engagement, were already celebrating the new wealth of their friend instead of attending the wedding. Inebriated, they were harassing the helpers and acting like as they owned the tavern as best friends of the future owner Don Pablo.

Upon the couples arrival, Diego immediately attended to the situation and told the men to leave the tavern. "We won't have to do what you say, Don Diego," one of them grinned. "Don Pablo will be the new owner of the tavern after he married Señorita Escalante. He won't like it if you aren't nice to his friends. You should leave instead and stop harassing us," he smirked. "One more wine to celebrate the wedding of Don Pablo." He raised his cup and signaled the helper to bring a new one.

"I have bad news for you," Diego said. " Señorita Escalante hasn't married your friend Pablo but me. As the tavern belongs to me now, I tell you to leave. Maybe you want to pay your friend Pablo a visit in prison."

"He's in prison? Why?" the man blanched.

"He can tell you that himself. Now leave this tavern and don't come back!" Diego ordered.

Confused and intimidated, the men rose from their seats and left.

"Thank you, Don Diego," Alicia, one of Victoria's helpers said, who were very surprised to see her married to Diego instead of Don Pablo, and they didn't hide their relief that they were saved from the harassment of his friends.

Diego and Victoria didn't have a moment to themselves as Diego had hoped, since there were so many hands from friends to shake who congratulated them to their wedding while expressing their surprise. A few even dared to ask what he had told Victoria at the altar but neither Diego nor Victoria were willing to reveal it.

After the meal that Victoria's helpers had prepared for the reception, Diego was happy to have Victoria in his arms for the opening dance.

"Are you all right?" he asked her.

"I think so," she whispered. "But how could you do that? If the alcalde..." He felt her tremble in his arms, showing her nervousness.

"Shh, we can't talk now. Don't think about it. It will be all right," he whispered. "We're married and nothing can change that." Victoria calmed down a little at his words and let him lead her through the dance.

Afterwards Victoria and Diego split up to change dance partners as they were supposed to and Diego changed places with his father who had the honor to have the first dance with the bride. When the dance floor was crowded with dancers, Diego took the chance to slip away unnoticed.

"Buenos días, Señoras y Señores," Zorro made his presence known from the balcony of the first floor before he swung himself down from the chandelier. Gracefully, he landed in the center of the dance floor as the guests interrupted their dancing and made space for him. Turning around, he faced Victoria.

"Victoria, I want to wish you all the best for your marriage with Don Pablo. I was delayed, so I couldn't come earlier and attend the wedding."

"She didn't marry Don Pablo," Mendoza corrected him with a full mouth, swallowing down the rest of a cookie. "Don Diego made her marry him, and Don Pablo is in prison because he's Zorro. You would know that if you had been there."

"If Don Pablo is Zorro then who am I, Sergeant?" Zorro asked with feigned indignation.

"Of course, you're the real Zorro," Mendoza confirmed. "There must be a mistake. I have to inform the alcalde about it immediately." He picked up another cookie before he left the tavern to head for the alcalde's office.

Zorro turned his attention back to Victoria. "There's nothing more to say now. Without you, there will be no more Zorro. I wish you happiness for your future with Don Diego who will be able to give you what I never could, a home and a family. Adios."

Zorro took her hand and kissed it before he headed back to the first floor and vanished in a cloud of smoke. Shortly after that, Diego mingled with the guests again who were discussing Zorro's last appearance.

"It appears we have Zorro's blessing," he said, stepping next to Victoria and his father.

"You …," Victoria started accusingly but stopped her sentence unfinished, too well aware of the surrounding people.

"It's sad that Zorro has left us," his father remarked. "What would you have done, Victoria, if he had come to the wedding in time? Who would you have married?"

Victoria threw Diego a look before she answered his father. "Zorro could never have married me as long as there's a price on his head. We all know that. If he had come to the wedding, the alcalde would have arrested him, and instead of Don Pablo, he would be sitting in jail to be hanged tomorrow. I could never bear that."

"I never believed that Don Pablo was Zorro though he is a tall man but not as tall as Diego or Zorro," Alejandro said. "Just because you wanted to marry him, he doesn't become Zorro. Then Diego could be Zorro too, but who would believe that?" he joked, patting his son on the shoulder.

"Yes, who would," Diego grimaced, as Victoria looked at him, shocked, realizing only now that his father didn't know his secret.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Diego had led Victoria to the bar when suddenly the tavern door opened and closed with a loud bang. Satisfied with the attention he had attracted, Don Pablo entered the tavern, followed by his friends who had been told to leave by Diego earlier. He headed straight for the bar where Diego and Victoria were sipping a drink.

"Don Pablo, it's good to see that the alcalde released you from prison," Diego said politely, facing the uninvited guests.

"Yes, the alcalde believed me finally that I'm not Zorro after Mendoza reported Zorro's appearance here at the wedding party," Don Pablo said. "But that's not what I came for."

"Why are you here, Don Pablo?" Victoria asked. "You know that I only agreed to the engagement because you left me no other chance after you ruined my reputation, but I'm married to Diego now."

"I came here to change that," Don Pablo said threateningly, pulling a pistol out of his pocket. "This was supposed to be my wedding reception, and I still intend it to be mine. Don Diego stole my bride, but I won't accept that. If he dies, you're free again to marry me, and I still get the tavern. Consider it as a favor that I'm ridding you of your unwanted husband."

"No, you can't do that!" Victoria screamed, as Pablo pointed the pistol at Diego, pushing herself in front of her husband. His father and other guests tried to prevent Pablo from shooting, but they couldn't reach him in time as his friends were blocking them.

Facing Victoria made Pablo hesitate for a second, which was enough for Diego to throw himself and Victoria down on the ground to evade the deadly bullet. They both landed on the hard wooden floor, Diego covering her with his body as Don Pablo fired.

In his arms he felt Victoria's go limp as they hit the floor. "Victoria," he asked in panic as he bent over her body. He checked for her life signs and noticed with relief that she was still breathing. Her eyelids fluttered, and she looked at him confused.

"Are you all right? Are you injured?"

Victoria shook her head. "I'm fine," she said slowly.

"Don't you ever do that again! Throwing yourself in front of me!" Diego shouted angrily at Victoria, ignoring the shocked look of his father and the other guests, who were surprised by the anger he displayed towards his wife when hardly anyone had seen him lose his control before. They probably thought that Victoria hadn't made such a good choice by marrying him. Victoria started to cry, and he immediately felt remorse for talking to her like that. "I'm sorry," he whispered as he helped her to get up and made her sit down on the nearest chair.

His father handed over Don Pablo to Mendoza and two of his soldiers who had followed Don Pablo back to the party. "This will be the most memorable wedding in Los Angeles," Mendoza said, shaking his head. "Señorita Escalante forced at the altar to marry Don Diego, Zorro's final appearance and Don Pedro trying to murder Don Diego."

"I couldn't be more surprised either," his father agreed. "I didn't know that I would get a daughter-in-law today." His father threw Diego a reproachful look.

"Don Pablo will be going back to prison right away," Mendoza announced as he and his soldiers led him and his friends away. "He may not be Zorro, but he tried to murder an innocent citizen on his wedding day and can expect a long sentence. He will have to face the people too who lent him money. There were a few already who wanted their money back when they found out that Victoria didn't marry him, and he lost his chance to get her tavern."

"Are you both all right, Victoria? Diego?" his father turned to them.

"I'm fine," Diego said, rubbing his shoulder. "I only bruised my shoulder a little when I hit the floor."

Victoria nodded under her tears, wiping them with the handkerchief Diego handed her.

"You frightened me when you were unconscious for a moment." Diego sat down beside her and put an arm around her.

Victoria shook her head. "I'm fine. I think I must have fainted for a moment."

"I didn't know Don Pablo was so desperate for money," his father said. "I knew he had some problems, but I'd never thought he'd go so far as to force Victoria into marrying him by shooting you, Diego. My apology to you, Victoria. I didn't understand that he only wanted you for your tavern."

"Thank you, Don Alejandro."

"The bullet hit a wine pitcher," his father pointed at the shards of an empty pitcher on the top of the bar. "It was a near miss, Diego. If you hadn't reacted so fast, you or Victoria would have been hit. What a tragedy if one of you had been killed on your wedding day. "

Victoria turned white at the thought, and Diego couldn't bear it any longer. Victoria was shaken by the events of the day, and he regretted talking to her so harshly in his anger that resulted in his fear of losing her. He couldn't stand the idea of seeing her in her blood again, dying in his arms like when she had taken a bullet intended for Zorro and tried to save him before. Once was more than enough, especially now when she was expecting his child.

"I think we've had enough today," Diego announced, pulling her closer. "We are going home."

"I need my bag from my room for tonight," Victoria said.

"I'll get it," one of the servants offered, heading for the stairs while Diego led Victoria outside.

"How convenient that you already came with the carriage today or was this your plan from the start? Because you wanted to get married today? Was your tiredness just a pretense?" his father asked, who had followed them outside. "Was that what you were brooding about last night? About Victoria getting married?"

"Yes, I wanted to be prepared with the carriage because I hoped that Victoria would accept my marriage proposal," Diego said, loading Victoria's bag into the carriage before he offered her his hand to help her inside.

"It's over, Querida. We're going home," he whispered to her quietly and was relieved when Victoria smiled again.

"Why didn't you say something before? And what did you say to her at the altar to make her marry you?" Alejandro asked. "How did he change your mind, Victoria?"

"What I said to Victoria at the altar is private, Father," Diego cut him off while he joined Victoria in the open carriage.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

His hope to be alone with Victoria during the ride home and have a private talk was dashed by his father's insistence to ride with them to the hacienda. His father's disagreement with Diego's actions were made clear when his father caught up with them and decided to ride on Victoria's side of the carriage. Alejandro tried to talk to Victoria and make her answer his questions but she stayed silent, leaning back in the cushions of a carriage.

"Just give us a break, Father," Diego said. "Victoria has been through enough today. Don Pedro's attack has given her quite a shock."

"I can understand that Victoria isn't in the mood for talking but that doesn't relieve you from answering my questions, Diego. You will tell me why you behaved so outrageously today to steal another man's bride at the altar. This is unacceptable." His father made his horse pick up the pace until he was in front of the carriage before he slowed down again to end up at Diego's side.

Driving silently, Diego felt Victoria watching him most of the time, but his father's presence made him stay quiet. Taking the reins in one hand, he reached out for her hand and covered it gently, holding it during the drive. With a smile he realized that there were so many things they hadn't done together, simply because they never had enough time together. Now he could simply hold hands with his wife and see her face in the morning on the pillow next to him or spend the evening together with her in the parlor after a long day in the saddle. His smile became broader, as he thought of the prospect to spend his future with her. Victoria relaxed beside him when she sensed his happy mood.

When they finally arrived at the hacienda, he stopped the carriage in front of the entrance and picked Victoria up to carry her into the house while his father was delayed by some servants.

"Welcome home, Señora de la Vega," he said, as he sat her down inside. "Before I say anything else, I want to tell you again that I'm sorry for talking so harshly to you earlier. I had no right to do that, but I just can't stand losing you and your action reminded me of the day when you took the bullet for me. Please promise me, you'll never try to sacrifice yourself for me again."

"I forgive you, and I will promise—Diego started to smile, but Victoria wasn't finished— if you do the same."

"What do you mean by that?" he asked, confused.

"If you no longer try to protect me, I will do the same," she said.

Diego's smile vanished. "You know that I would give my life for you. It's worthless without you."

"That doesn't make it right to keep risking it for me all the time. I almost lost you today when I thought the alcalde would arrest you as Zorro at the altar and then again when Don Pablo tried to shoot you." She shuddered at the thought. "And why did you appear as Zorro? What was that for? What about the guards who could have seen you and shot you on the spot?"

"I was never in danger of the soldiers because I never left the tavern and only changed in one of your rooms and back. I planned to appear as Zorro to make everyone believe that Diego and Zorro are different persons but when the alcalde arrested Don Pablo, I didn't want him to be falsely imprisoned. Now I regret that I didn't let him stay there longer for all that he did to you. Just to have you as my wife was worth the risk though I know it put you under a lot of stress today," he admitted.

"You call that stress?" she said, outraged. "Almost becoming a widow on my wedding day? Turning my wedding upside down?"

"It worked out in the end, didn't it?" he soothed her. "Or do you regret being married to me?"

"No, I don't," she assured him, leaning her head against his chest. "It's what I always wanted, but I thought it was a dream that could never come true. I couldn't see a way how we could get married without the alcalde arresting or killing you at the ceremony. I'm sorry I hurt you so much. Locking you out last night was the hardest thing I ever did. I knew if I let you hold me again, I'd never be able to go through with the wedding with Don Pablo."

"I need you in my life, and I can't live without holding you in my arms." He stroked her back, needing to feel her warm body under his hands.

"I can't either. I spent the whole night crying, imagining my life without you, and I didn't know what to do. I was afraid that you would interrupt the wedding and get killed, but I didn't want to marry Pablo either. I kept on telling myself that it was the right decision to marry Don Pablo and that seeing you arrested and hanged would be worse, but it hurt so much." She clung to his arms in their embrace, her face reflecting the pain. "I never expected you, though I should have made the connection a long time ago."

"Can you love the man behind the mask?"

"I think you know that already, but you still have to show me that you're the same man," she looked at him, running her hands across his chest.

"Do you want me to dress as Zorro and unmask?" he asked, surprised.

"I'd rather see what you hide under that elegant suit and that flouncy shirt." She rose to her tiptoes to kiss him passionately. It was the first time they were alone and had time for kissing after the wedding, and it felt like heaven. She was his wife now, and he could hold her in his arms and kiss her without having to be on the run all the time.

"You know I can't resist you when you kiss me like this. I missed you in my arms last night. I want to hold you and love you and keep you safe in my arms," he whispered, his hands roaming along her body, reassuring himself that she was fine and in his arms where she belonged. "But same rules for all," he said.

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused.

"You want to see me without my suit, and I get to see you too. The shutters will stay open," he said, grinning, when she blushed, realizing he would get to see her naked for the first time. The thought made him forget his previous tiredness.

He released her when he heard his father talking in the entrance hall. "My father, he's coming. Let's hurry before he starts questioning us during siesta." He offered her his hand and conspiratorially, they rushed to his room hand in hand, and Diego locked the door behind them before his father could delay them.

It was already dark outside when they woke up again after their lovemaking, refreshed from their sleep. "Will you throw me out of bed again?" he asked, as she lay in his arms with her head on his chest.

"You know that I was only concerned for your safety. I didn't want the soldiers spot Toronado and find you," Victoria said.

"And you didn't want to talk either," Diego stated.

"No, I couldn't face to lose you," she admitted. "I only wanted some happiness while I tried to forget my upcoming wedding in your arms."

"Are you happy now?"

"Very happy! And I promise I won't throw you out of the bed anymore. I'd love to wake up in your arms in the morning."

"I'll do my best to make it so." Diego kissed her tenderly. "The alcalde has lost his final chance to catch Zorro, because he has left the area, and I will stay home with my beautiful wife and my family."

"Will you tell your father the truth about Zorro? I always thought that Zorro had a helper and assumed it would be your father."

"No, Felipe was my helper before he went to Monterrey to become a lawyer two months ago."

"Felipe? But how?"

"Do you want to discuss Zorro or show me how much you love me?" Diego knew how to touch her to gain her immediate attention.

"Who doesn't want to talk now?" she challenged him. "I think I must show my husband again how very grateful—Victoria bent over him to kiss him—I am for forcing me to marry him."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

They escaped his father and his questions until the next morning when his father surprised them while they were kissing in front of their bedroom.

"Diego, Victoria, can you tell me what's going on? I wanted to talk to you yesterday, but you disappeared so suddenly," his father said.

"I'm sorry, but we were busy," Diego grinned. "I had a lot to discuss with my wife."

"Discuss?" his father questioned. "You forced Victoria into marrying you and you call that a discussion?" "Victoria, tell me the truth, what did Diego whisper in your ear in the church to make you agree to the wedding?"

Victoria blushed. "I don't want to talk about it, and Diego didn't force me to anything."

"If Diego didn't force you, then why can't you tell?"

"Because it's private, Father," Diego said. "All you need to know is that we're very happy to be married to each other."

"That doesn't answer my questions at all," Alejandro said, frustrated. "Why did you spend the night with Don Pablo, Victoria, and agreed to marry him if you really didn't want him? And what about Zorro? And suddenly, you and Diego are a happy couple? All that doesn't really make sense to me. And did you have to marry her now, Diego, after everything?" He didn't mention Victoria's ruined reputation, but it was clear what he meant.

"Can we talk about this after breakfast?" Diego asked, noticing how Victoria had turned white.

"Excuse me for a moment," Victoria said, as she quickly went back to the room, closing the door behind her.

"Excuse me, Father." Diego followed her into their room and saw her retching over the chamber pot. "Are you all right?"

"I'll be fine in a moment." With a white face she straightened up again and wiped her mouth with a cloth.

"That proves it, doesn't it?" Diego said, sitting down beside her on the bedside with his arm around her shoulders.

Victoria nodded. "I have been sick the previous mornings too, but I heard that it will pass after a few weeks."

"After a few weeks? Are you going to be sick in the morning for weeks?" Diego said incredulously.

"It's possible," Victoria said miserably.

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Just give me a few more minutes. You can go ahead for breakfast." Victoria leaned back into the pillow.

"Your face is still as white as the sheets," Diego stated. "Don't you want to go back to bed?"

Victoria shook her head. "I'm hungry too. Don't worry, I'll be fine soon."

"The maid can bring you your breakfast if you want to stay in bed," Diego suggested.

"It's all right, Diego," she assured him. "I don't need to be pampered because I'm having a child. I managed the last days too, working in the tavern. Can you just give me my bag?"

"I'd love to pamper you. I haven't been able to do much for you, making you wait for me to keep my pledge to marry you. You suffered enough and now it's my time to make up for it." He took her hand and kissed it, making her smile by looking at her the way he used to as Zorro.

When Diego lifted the slightly open bag she had brought yesterday, something wrapped in a cloth fell out of it and dropped on the floor. As he picked it up, he noticed that it was a long kitchen knife wrapped in a shawl.

"I hope you don't intend to use that on me?" Diego asked with a smile, as he looked at the knife in his hands.

"No! I was so desperate yesterday, and I didn't know what to do. That's why I packed the knife from the kitchen. I didn't know if Don Pablo would try to force himself on me. He agreed that it would only be a marriage of convenience, but I wasn't sure what he would do. I know it would have been his right but still...," she cried.

Diego put the knife down and sat down on the bedside again. "Shh, Querida. It's over. _We _are married, and you're safe with me. I'd never force myself on you." Diego bent over her, gently stroking her hair and kissing her cheek.

"I know. Being married to you is the one thing I never dared hoping for." She wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tight until she calmed down and stopped crying.

"Are you feeling better again?" he asked, when she released him again and Victoria nodded. "I'll go and face my father while we wait for you to join us for breakfast."

Z Z Z

"Diego, where's Victoria?" his father asked, as he sat down at the breakfast table.

"She's coming in a few minutes." Diego started with his breakfast.

"Victoria looked very pale earlier. Did she feel sick?" his father asked suspiciously.

"Why do you ask?" Diego asked, feigning ignorance.

"When your mother was pregnant with you, she was sick in the mornings too. I don't want to paint things too black, but you had better be sure that Victoria isn't pregnant after all."

"This isn't your business, Father, but I can assure you that any child we will have will be a true de la Vega," Diego rebuked him.

"How can you be so sure about that? I mean, she spent the night with Don Pablo, and there was Zorro too?"

"Father, for the last time, stop it. It's my child and no one else's."

"Does it mean Victoria is pregnant? From you?" his father asked, shocked. "How could you! You weren't married. And she was another man's bride! And how did that happen? I mean, she was engaged to Don Pablo and in love with Zorro."

"I'm Zorro, Father, and I wasn't willing to give her up so easily," Diego admitted. "Don Pablo tried to force Victoria into a marriage to get the money from her tavern. We were both very unhappy about it."

"You are Zorro?" his father leaned back in his chair, turning as pale as Victoria earlier. "But that can't be. You don't know how to handle a sword, and Zorro was your wedding reception yesterday. He didn't even know that Victoria married you."

"That was all an act. It was quite easy to slip into one of Victoria's rooms, change into Zorro and vanish again by changing back into my normal clothes," Diego explained. "I had to make sure that nobody suspected me of being Zorro. That's what Victoria was afraid of."

"You fooled me like everyone else. How could you do that? All these years you were Zorro, and you never told me. I should have known! I'm your father!"

"It wasn't easy to keep it from you but you must understand that I only did it to protect you and Victoria."

"When did you tell Victoria?"

"I didn't tell her until yesterday," Diego admitted.

"Is that what you whispered into her ear? That you were Zorro? Is that why she agreed to marry you after she refused your proposal before?"

"That's more or less what happened," Diego said.

"You aren't telling me what exactly you said to her, are you?" his father inquired.

"As I said this was private," Diego repeated.

"De Soto was right when he suspected that Victoria would marry Zorro, except he chose the wrong man. What if he had arrested you as Zorro? Then you would be sitting in the cell now instead of Don Pablo, waiting for your hanging. Didn't you think of that?"

"It was a risk I had to take," Diego admitted.

"A risk you had to take? How could you? Did you want me to find out my son was Zorro when you were hanging dead at the gallows? You couldn't expect that the alcalde would arrest Don Pablo. Knowing now that you are Zorro, it appears like facing your sure death when you proposed to Victoria in the church. How could you do that?" his father was at loss for words when he realized what had been at stake in the church. "Is that why you were acting so strange last night because you never expected to make it through the day?"

"There's no life for me without Victoria, and I'd rather die than live without her," he said quietly, as the men rose from their seats when Victoria entered the room.

"Oh, Diego." Moved by his words, Victoria rushed into his arms.

"What else did you talk about?" She asked, noticing the shocked look on his father's face.

"I told my father that I'm Zorro, and that you're going to have our child," Diego explained.

"Oh!" she looked at Alejandro, embarrassed. "I don't know what you think of us now, but I'm sorry."

"It's all right, Querida." Diego drew her onto the chair next to his. "Are you feeling better now?"

When she nodded, Diego turned his attention back to his father.

"Don't look so shocked, Father. It's in the past now. I expect you to treat Victoria with the respect due to her as my wife and the future mother of my child."

"I don't know what is more shocking, your and Victoria's behavior before you were married, or the fact that you are Zorro and that he was willing to risk his life to marry you yesterday. I might have lost you yesterday at the wedding," his father said.

"Zorro's time is over and all there is to do is to celebrate the future and your grandchildren. Why don't we have a toast?"

Diego walked over to his father's cabinet and retrieved the sherry that was reserved for special occasions, filling three glasses. Victoria and his father joined him at the small table with the sherry, and together the de la Vegas lifted their glasses.

"To the future!"

Victoria only sipped a little at her drink before she put it down, making a face as if she felt sick again.

"Are you feeling all right?" he asked, concerned.

"I'll be fine after breakfast," Victoria assured him. "I can't drink this on an empty stomach."

"I already had breakfast, but I'll join you for some coffee," his father said, "and then Diego can tell us all about Zorro and what are his plans now."

"I can't tell you everything about Zorro if I'm ever going to have breakfast," Diego stated, "but I can tell you that Zorro officially retired yesterday, and he won't come back when I have a family to care for. The alcalde will realize that Zorro has left and there's no more chance to catch him." Diego smiled and comfortingly stroked Victoria's back. "You will have to convince the other caballeros, Father, to take a stand together against the alcalde if you want to change anything in this pueblo. I'm willing to fight against him with my newspaper, making his oppression public, but I'm no longer willing to risk my life as Zorro. Zorro was initially created to get you and Victoria out of prison..."

Diego began to tell how he got the idea for Zorro and started the legend, and how he became trapped in his double roles with no way out, fearing he'd never be able to marry Victoria if he hadn't forced her to marry him yesterday, risking discovery by the alcalde. Breakfast time wasn't enough to answer all his father's and Victoria's question but only the start of many more Zorro tales.

THE END


End file.
